One of the difficulties in handling textile fiber is the tendency for fiber to settle in mounds or piles when it is desirable that the fiber be generally uniformly dispersed. It appears to be a problem regardless of whether the fiber is individualized fiber filaments, in clumps, tufts or in some other form. In the production of spunlaced nonwoven fabrics, more uniform basis weight distribution is obtained when the fiber is more uniformly dispersed across the width of the fabric at the earliest stages of formation. E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Del. (DuPont) has invested considerable time and effort to improve uniformity in the manufacture of its Sontara.RTM. spunlaced fabrics. DuPont's focus for providing the desired uniformity has been the chute feeder which creates a batt of fibers for processing into the finished spunlaced fabric. The chute feeder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,606,776 to Freund et al. and includes a bin or hopper in which fiber is first provided. The fiber is typically supplied by a pneumatic conveyor and in the conventional arrangement, the fiber enters an inlet in one wall of the bin or hopper. The fiber in the bin or hopper tends to pile into a mound close to the center near the inlet. The batt from the chute feeder tends to have a heavier or denser portion along the center where the fiber was mounded in the hopper. The denser and heavier portion tends to be found throughout the process and even in the final product.